Ex-bookie Geoffrey Landrey pleads not guilty to obtain financial advantage by deception

A former high-flying bookie will stand trial over allegations he lied to liquidators and the ATO by falsifying mortgages across Sydney, Newcastle and Melbourne.

A former high-flying bookkeeper, accused of cooking the books during a property deal by giving fake mortgages to liquidators and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), will stand trial.

Geoffrey Landrey, who was a trackside stalwart in the golden age of horse racing, appeared at the Downing Centre Local Court last month facing over 20 fraud-related charges.

The 78-year-old pleaded not guilty to three counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, and 22 counts of using a false document to obtain financial advantage.

The allegations arise from a residential subdivision at Edmonton, south of Cairns, trading under the entity of Stony Creek Pty Ltd, which was placed into voluntary administration in 2012.

Geoffrey Vance Landrey leaves Downing Centre Local Court.

It will be alleged Landrey, who was the company’s sole director, duped appointed liquidators by using fake mortgages purporting to have been signed by investors back in July 2007.

Court documents allege between December 2012 and May 2013, Landrey palmed off ten of these mortgages to liquidators and the ATO, using the names of 14 separate individuals who are understood to be former tenants of the subdivision.

Landrey is also accused of falsifying a declaration of trust between the outgoing Stony Creek company and the new company he formed Combined Property Holdings Pty Ltd.

Landrey will face court again in April.

As a result of the alleged deception, liquidators were led to believe the property transfer between both companies was a “valid commercial transaction”, rather than one which should have been voided, court documents state.

Additionally, Landrey is accused of using the fraudulent mortgages to swindle the ATO out of $2.2m in tax rebates.

Court documents allege Landrey received GST rebates of $200,000 for each false mortgage submitted to the ATO, along with the declaration of trust, which was deemed to be genuine.

Landrey is also accused of dishonestly obtaining $361,133.08 from a trust account held by the Queensland Supreme Court, after making false representations regarding a separate company.

Landrey, who is based in Edmonston in Queensland, will remain on bail and be committed to trial on April 24.